Home Forums Reloading Varmint Rifles Why I like BLUE DOT

Jordan;

FWIW, (and yes, I know QuickLoad isn't deadnuts accurate, but it's closer than a WAG), your load is well within pressure max for the .22-250.

So has anyone tried BD in the .22 Hornet or the .221 Fireball? What were your results? Seems like the hornet would be ideal for Blue Dot.

Not yet....... but I'm siding closer to Unique in the Hornet, due to the VERY small capacity.

Now, the Fireball is a different critter.........

PM Rocky Raab on the Hornet and Blue Dot... he has used it for years evidently...

I can extropolate charges that would work in the fireball case, but in doing so, I know I'll really get flamed by the naythsayers...

Blue Dot is a pretty consistent and predictable powder..

a couple of examples are;

in a 308 sized case, regardless of bullet weights used or regardless of caliber, 22 grains of Blue Dot is the maximum amount before you start popping primers...

in a 6.5 x 55 case or a 57 mm case, such as the 7 x 57, 6mm Rem, 257 Roberts, 8 x 57 Mauser.. 24 grains of Blue Dot is max, regardless of caliber or bullet weight...

blue dot prefers shorter fatter cases...
it really likes Rem BR cases or PPC cases, or the Winchester Short mags and Super Short Mag cases.....

naturally since it is considered a pistol and shotgun powder, it also performs well in any straight walled case, like a 444, or 45/70 style case...375 Win, 38/55 etc..

now let me go put on my flame suit, army helmet....and get ready for the incoming rounds...

Kinda what I thought, hence the question about the Hornet with its gently tapered case. The Fireball may be a different animal.

I wouldn't EVEN try to talk anyone into or out of being what people are. All that does is cause them to burrow in deeper, just like a tick.

I also never thought chump changing was the really ecomonic way to go.

People who do things like using Blue Dot in small quantities in a case the size of a 22-250 are accidents waiting to happen.

I used to use the "standard" 2.7 gr of Bullseye with a 148 gr wadcutter in a 38 special case for practice...UNTIL I saw pistol come apart from a double charge. I switched to Unique, my scores stayed the same, it cost me a few more pennies, but I didn't have to think about the consequences of a double load, the powder would spill out, or having a brain fart and double loading, or getting distracted and underloading one and double loading the next, then Lady Luck going to sleep or Murphy giving me a pat on the butt when loading them for a rapid fire event.

Posting accidents or a different opinion just makes the machomen menalities get woody's and want to spitfire all the more.

I don't see where loading a 22-250 to the same velocity as a 223 and then bragging about saving money is de rigueur...seems a bit wrong-headed, or wrong thinking to me, not that economy isn't a good thing in this day and age. I get more velo out of ALL my 223's using a 40 gr bullet, ANY brand/ And the correct load of Varget gives me similar or better accuracy than Seafire is getting with his "ecomonical" load of BD. 40 gr V-max, Sierra and Noslers are my bullets of choice for my 223's and 55-65 in my 22-243. Pretty much standard for those two cartridges for the past 40 odd years, AND ALMOST maxed out...what the He** is a squib load good for except punching paper or short range, anyway????

I have nothing against using BD for the correct applications, I use it all the time. AND, use it as a starter powder for some loads in my 12GaFH.(not a good practice for novices) and for slug loads in my 3.5" chambered shotguns. But SR4759 or 4227 is are better powders, have more bulk, fill the cases better, less fillers required, etc.

Ibindoondis reloading thing a long time, seen and done some very stoopid things. This internet brings out ALL the questionable activities and thoughts of all those who "gotnutton" better to do than look at a monitor and punch a keyboard.

And in spreading manure all over the place there's a very good chance of causing damage somewhere along the line to someone or something.

The need to "strut like a peacock" is overwelming in humanity, but the population needs thinning out so I wish everyone all the rope they need to achieve their destiny.

I'm constantly surprised just how consistent it really is. I see ES's of 1-5fps over my chrony, depending on the load. That's pretty incredible!

Not interested in saving a few pennies, but I am interested in potential increases in accuracy. I do not load my Hornets to max velocities 'cause that is not what they were / are intended for.

But very fast powders have always performed best in all of my Hornets.

Amazing that the guy building a 12gaFH shoulder-fired artillery piece (and documenting it in a thread now HOW long?) is commenting on perceiving someone else to be "strutting like a peacock"......

The warning not to use shotgun powders because some lots may or may not be stable at rifle pressures comes from the makers of those powders.
I understand the powder companies issued the warning because others have used it and had bad results, meaning that the loads detonated..., so be my guest and use what you want. E

Hold on. Having "bad results" does not automatically mean something detonated. There are dozens of other things that might cause somebody to claim "bad results".

Use what you choose is good advice. It includes the sentiment that if you do NOT choose, but somebody else does, just zip your lip and let him be.

Reloading can be dangerous. If you choose the wrong powder by accident, you can blow up a gun. If you use the wrong amount of the correct powder, you can blow up a gun. But if you use the right amount of the powder you intend to use, you will be fine - barring some other type of idiocy. And if you are careless enough to make mistakes like using the wrong powder or double charging, perhaps you should rethink this whole reloading hobby altogether.

I am very curious what you were using when this occurred...

http://www.24hourcampfire.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/ubb/showflat/Number/2067095

wasn't me who loaded it, just brought it to the forum floor...
so since I didn't load it, answers are speculation and pure academic...

in 5 years of doing this, this forum member brought this to my attention and one other guy admitted to not paying attention and double charging the case....

after starting to load some pistol rounds, it came clearly to me that they require a lot more attention to what you are doing than loading any powder in a rifle case....

folks want things to be made idiot proof...
if ya want something idiot proof, don't let an idiot do it...

naythe sayers come on here and knock it and then admit they never even load something with it, because they have read and know better...

that's akin to telling someone not to drive in LA traffic, but they have never been to LA.. they are just reciting what they read in a magazine or something...

my hands on experience and the hands on experience of a lot of other guys, differ from what you naythsayers are talking about reflecting what you have read.. or the factory's lack of published data....

yet the same factory publishes data on rifle cartridges using faster powders, such as Unique, Red Dot and Green Dot, plus 2400 which has a close burn rate...

and as far as the 221 fireball, in their load data published back in the 80s, blue dot was actually factory published for that round and the 22 Hornet.. I don't have it on hand, but have seen it in print...

factorys don't recommend using powders that they haven't necessarily tested, because they don't want the liability of some lawyer coming at them saying my client screwed up and you didn't warn him well enough...

whoever had that happened, overcharged the case is what every gun smith has told me that looked at those pictures of that case...back to load technique and operator error...not the powders fault...

There is data using 296, h110, 2400, lilgun, etc. All in same column as Blue dot used in the hornet, just looked it up in one of my books. Also, Fireball uses 2400, lillgun, and H110 etc. to..

So how far away is the fire ball capacity to a 22-250?

Rocky;

Stop making sense.

Seafire;

Stop using facts.

Seriously, folks want to get their panties in a twist over this one........

Too bad for them....hey Seafire, you gonna be doing some load testing on BD and the .308?
I have one waiting for the results.

Since when is a .224 bullet clocking 3300fps considered a squib load??

in the process of that and the 7/08 at the moment...

weather here has been a little wet, and some car repairs have diverted my attention to it.. but I have a bunch loaded up already... just need to get out and do some trigger pulling...

have results on the 110 grain and 125 grainers already...

still waiting to do the 150s, or 155s, the 168 and the 170s...

Actually, I am running about 10.7 grains of BD in my Furball under 40 BKs and liking that. The same rifle works pretty good with Lil Gun, too.
A caveat, I nearly blew myself up using Blue Dot because I was IGNORANT of the now-accepted 60 percent capacity headwall. And you need to be careful charging. I THINK I have accidentally double-or-stack-loaded once in my 223 gopher loads, I had one mystery case that showed some belting and won't take a primer any more.
As for the 22BR, I'm running 14.4 of BD, again under 40 grainers and it shoots excellent.

The 60 % headwall capacity applies to some cases and the taller they are ( say 06 vs 308) I recommend 50% capacity to the headwall...

key is don't start at the top load recommendation on any powder.. work up...

all Blue Dot data I have ever posted, I have gone beyond what I list as maximum... I noticed lose primers beyond that or no appreciable increase in velocity...

for 06 sized cases and Magnums, I have started to use SR 4759, especially after someone blew a mag case by double priming it...

but still... just proves folks have to pay attention to what they are doing...regardless of type of powder..